In Search of Something Greater
by phymatosorus
Summary: Suziene and Kasuru, a she-Eevee and he-Pikachu Exploration Team, develop an unlikely bond as they embark on a lonesome journey to the other side of the world. Even with many expeditions and missions under their belt, they find themselves completely unprepared for a conflict which upends their world, stemming from the chaotic new continent- and themselves.


**Chapter 1**

"Okay, are you ready _now_?" Suziene, the upstart Eevee perched on the prow of their little boat, beamed down at the Pikachu sprawled on the yellow sand, his belongings still in disarray around him.

"...Do I look ready, Suzi?" He let out a loud sigh, staring up at the blue sky. He'd been carrying crates' worth of supplies from their former base down to the beach, and it'd left him completely winded. Lying there, he'd been counting the minutes Suzi spent inside their boat, a small vessel with a likewise small cargo hold and cabin. While he'd been carrying the supplies to their vessel, she'd been busy stuffing their goods inside, making good use of every last inch. They both knew it wasn't the most impressive thing in the world- but when they'd contacted the Conkeldurr shipbuilder, they expressed their desire to have something nimble, which they would use on their future adventures. It was a schooner, capable of being piloted by the two alone, able to be steered about without the assistance of another Water type Pokémon.

She jumped down from her perch and landed on the sand elegantly, making her way towards the Pikachu. "Oh, come on, stop being lazy, Kasuru! I've made you climb mountains before, is it really that much of a hassle to carry a couple bags here and there!?"

Kasuru's view of the bright blue sky became obstructed by the brown silhouette of his longtime Explorer friend, as she put her face inches away from his, looking into him with dark brown eyes catching the reflection of the bright yellow sand around them, glowing with excitement and hope. He smirked. "What is this, a staring contest?"

"Not quite." Suddenly, Suziene turned around so that instead of her face, he had a clear view of her rear, which made him confused for a moment before she started digging a pit right next to him with her two front paws, kicking sand all over him.

He covered his eyes and tried to spit out the sand that'd been caught by his mouth. "Hey! Okay, okay, fine, I'll finish getting those last few bags!" Still lying there on the ground, he placed a hand on her abdomen and shocked her, which elicited a yelp from Suziene and a laugh from him. She scampered away, rolling around in the sand, reveling in the pain from the shock. He rose, and was about to walk back to their den, until he decided to go back for more. "I'll finish getting the bags... When I'm finished with _you!_"

He charged at the Eevee, who was still rolling in the sand, but she caught him running towards him and was able to react. She jumped up and dodged to her left, which made Kasuru launch past her and into the shore beside them. He landed in the water with a loud splash, and was struggling to recompose himself before the Eevee charged at him in the exact way he'd attempted to, except this time she struck him head-on. They both crashed and rolled in the shallow tide, tussling around, kicking water up around them. The air was full of their shouts and some crackling from Kasuru's attempts to electrocute her.

In their grappling, they made their way out of the water and back onto the sand. The two were wrestling, wet and matted with sand, laughing and smiling as they continued to push each other around. Eventually, Kasuru established himself over her. The Pikachu had her pinned down beneath him, gripping her two extended arms by the hands, his legs right next to hers. He stared her down while she attempted to use her last bit of strength to push him away, a mischievous smile spreading across his face as he felt her tugging grow weaker and weaker. Their eyes locked, both of them were still, their bodies dripping over one another, broad daylight outlining their glossy figures. They remained there, unblinking.

There were no sounds, except their heavy breathing and the crashing of the water around them. Finally, the Eevee blinked.

Kasuru let out a maniacal laugh. "Yes! I overpowered you, AND I won the staring contest! Oh, man, what a victory!" He'd been using the last of his strength to shut down her resistance, but now, feeling satisfied, let himself slump right on top of her.

"Gah!" She struggled to wiggle herself out from beneath him. "How could I let this happen!? I thought I was the better fighter between us, this isn't fair!"

"I'm a better _wrestler_." Kasuru rose. "Well, guess that makes me the leader now. Not until you prove your worth and take your position back!"

"Oh, you shut up! We're both leaders, alright? It's just a title."

"Then why have you been naming me the 'assistant' leader for the past few months when introducing me to clients? Sure sounds like that title means a lot to you..."

"More to you than me! I've just enjoyed seeing how some of our clients react when I tell them _I'm_ the one in charge of you." She smiled at him awkwardly.

"Your tone..." The Pikachu raised an eyebrow. "What are you on about?"

"Nothing..."

They brushed themselves off, the Eevee grooming herself for a few minutes while Kasuru fixed the white bandana dangling around her neck, then they resumed their packing. By the time Suzi finished stuffing the last few bags in their cargo hold, the sun was starting to approach the horizon. Proud of her work, she beckoned Kasuru to come and look inside. A small square hatch in the floor opened to reveal a very stuffed and neatly organized array of goods and supplies- food, tends, some belongings and furniture they intended to set up once they found a suitable home in the new world. He was impressed, and complimented her efforts, which, although she knew it was insignificant, made her feel a certain level of pride she rarely felt.

Finally, they pushed their boat into the water. The product of several months of hard work- although they could've easily asked for a local shipbuilder to hand one to them for free, given ho w much they'd contributed to the well-being of the world around them, they instead opted to be humble and buy a modest sailboat at full price. They'd already said their last goodbyes to the townsfolk that had played a large role in their lives, a week before, and to the guild which they started from that granted them their independent explorer status. The venture to this beach had been it's own expedition, now they were far from the town they'd started from. They were ready.

Water sloshed around the hull and the boat began to sway with the tide. The two happily jumped aboard, and Kasuru let loose the sails. The winds were perfect for their destination: 'somewhere on the other side,' as Suziene had decided a year before.

As the boat began to make its way farther from the shore, Kasuru asked, looking back at the craggy coast, "Do you think we'll come back soon?"

Suziene shrugged, fixated towards the vast, empty ocean, too busy fantasizing over their future to look back. "When we feel like it, I guess."

* * *

Waves crashed around them. It'd been several hours since their departure, the sky was beginning to grow dark as the already set sun crept further away from them. Clouds grew overhead, covering the eager stars. Their initial excitement and joy at doing something few in their land had dared to do was replaced by nostalgia and looming regret.

Kasuru stood, straight as a pole, looking at the increasingly disturbed waters around them, the de facto captain. A few feet away, Suziene was curled up on the wooden floor atop a sack of dried fruit, spent from their battle hours ago, sleeping soundly.

Although he had been doing an excellent job putting up a facade of being relenting and accommodating for his Eevee partner, he couldn't help but feel genuine concern over how her behavior had changed from their past several months together. The thoughtful, calm and patient Suziene he'd gotten to know since their first expedition together years ago, was no more; and instead began to get replaced by a more exuberant and thrill seeking Suziene who proposed the idea of touring the other side of the world.

It concerned him, but he supposed that it was alright. He caught himself staring at her, again, and forced himself to look straight ahead. At the water. The growing grey in the sky and the darkness that was coming over them- all in all, a vast emptiness. _Yeah, no, that's boring._ He started staring again. _Why am I doing this, again?_ He couldn't remember. Not like it mattered, he guessed. He let go of the steer, and walked down the few steps onto the deck. He flipped open the hatch into the storage area, which was somewhat cramped. He hopped in, and found that it was nearly pitch-black, so he began to emit crackling fingers of electricity from his cheeks to light his way, careful not to catch anything on fire in the middle of the ocean. He found was he was looking for- a bag of apples. Hungrily, he snatched the whole bag, hoisted it up through the hatch where he came, then headed back to the stern of the schooner.

He was enjoying the apple in his right hand, clutching the bag in his left as he walked back to the stern. There, he noticed the Eevee stirring, which startled him and caused him to drop the bag. Apples rolled down the stern and onto the deck. The sight of his favorite food on the filthy ground made him say, "Damn it!"

"Oh no, your favorite apples are on the dirty floor. That sucks. Not like there's water all around us to clean them off, or anything," the sleepily spoken words called out from behind him. Suziene stretched her front paws, let out a loud yawn and continued lying on the bag. She was facing him. "I didn't know captains were allowed to just abandon their post like that..."

The Pikachu gave a nervous laugh and scratched his neck. "It was only for a minute or two. What, you really think we're gonna crash into anything out _here_?" He gestured towards the vast, empty expanse of water surrounding them. "I didn't think so!"

"Well, it's a matter of principle. If you can't stay there _now_, what's gonna prevent you from just going off when you feel like it at any time? While we're docking, you'll decide you need to take another apple and just let the boat crash into whatever port while you're down there in the cargo- sounds to me like I shouldn't put you in charge, _assistant leader_!" She paused. "Or, what if, while you're down in the storage, a giant Tentacruel appears out of nowhere, snaps the boat in half because you aren't there to save us?"

Kasuru couldn't believe his ears. "You're so stupid! None of that's ever gonna happen! I know I've lost client stuff once or twice, but I'm not that irresponsible! Besides, I'm supposed to be an _Explorer_, not a captain!"

"You're also my minion- abiding by my every word, heehee. If I want you to steer the boat while I sleep, you're gonna do it! That's why you're starting now. If I think that doing your job well means never taking your eyes off the waters, instead of, you know, looking at me all the time, then that's just the way it is!" She grinned at him while he gave her a surprised sideways glance, blushing, no longer chewing his apple. Looking away. "I was only sleeping half the time, by the way."

"I, uh..." Flustered, he gave up trying to speak and just let out a sigh. He threw the apple into the ocean and put his hands on the ship's wheel. "Whatever. Staring at the ocean gets boring, and I was just waiting for you to, uh, wake up."

"Oh, you were? I'll just think up something to drivel on about for the next couple hours, then you'll wish that I was asleep again!" She giggled as he gave yet another sigh. "Hmm... Wanna hear me talk about how a Shellos reproduces? It's quite the process."

"_No way_!"

"Okay, give me time to think of something else..."

* * *

Some hours later, the waves were crashing harder than ever before, such that the boat was rocking violently to and fro, threatening to dump the passengers and their belongings into the deep ocean.

Kasuru was clutching the steer, relying on the occasional blast of lightning to light up his surroundings (still an empty vastness, albeit a slightly more violent one), and Suziene was out of his sight down in the storage place, just as he'd advised her to, his most precious piece of cargo that he was unwilling to hand over to the seas. Not like he'd tell her or anything. In fact, when he told her to go down there, he'd made sure to tell her that the 'real' reason was, jokingly, "I don't want you in my sight anymore! Give me another reason why an Ampharos makes a better electric fighter than me, and I'll dump you into this storm myself!"

Alone, he wondered what was going to come out of their little journey. Thinking about it was a nice distraction from the rough waters. Were they going to disembark as Explorers from another continent, sent there to fix things up for the inhabitants of the new world, or did she have something else in mind? Her change of course had been so dramatic, he reflected. It took a whopping seven days for her to go from wanting to "be here forever," when talking about their former home, to wanting to get out and explore everything, because, as she'd said it, "being here is getting a bit boring."

Another blast of lightning flashed before him, this one so close that he could feel the steer vibrate and the floors beneath him shake, an incredibly loud sound that made his ears ring. He staggered, and was being tossed around the floor for a moment or two before he managed to grip the steer again and pull himself up once more. The increasingly rough waves got him worried. It'd always been in the back of his head- "what if something goes wrong," but he'd hoped that it'd always stay that way- just a thought at the back of his head, just another worry, a symptom of his overprotectiveness when it came to his exploring partner.

_Overprotectiveness? That's kinda weird. Is it really THAT bad? _For a moment, he forgot where he was, and considered all the times he'd fought by her side, with a ferocity that was absent when he was alone...

Out of the darkness, a great wave struck the port of the boat, hitting Kasuru with the maddening force of an angry sea. He barely managed to hold on- he knew that if he'd been a little less careful, he would've been swept of the boat, left alone in the vast sea as the ship got away from him. _I almost died, oh, Arceus help me!_

Panic was threatening to grip him. His legs, now shaky, were at risk of giving way and starting his descent into the watery darkness. But he kept telling himself to remain calm- after all, they were Explorers, they'd encountered tough foes and been outnumbered many times before, they'd put their lives at risk for the sake of somebody else's prized bracelet or girlfriend over and over again, all for some money and rank in return. But being in the middle of a vast ocean made him feel so helpless. He can't fight back against the very forces of nature. On land, at least, him and Suziene could control the flow of battle and devise a strategy to get out of a sticky situation with their lives, but here, there was no more strategy other than "just hang on!"

Another violent wave struck the starboard side of the boat. With it, came a yell from below the deck. Kasuru froze, then tried to shout, louder than the din of the ocean, "Suzi!? Are you okay?"

_She can't hear you, idiot!_ He grunted, angry at himself for what he was about to do, angry at the world for threatening to ruin their fun little trip. _It was just supposed to band e the two of us..._

He let go of the steer, his only responsibility, the only thing Suziene had told him to do. How would she react once he went down there to check on her? His overprotectiveness was acting up again, he was aware of it, but he couldn't bear just leaving her alone in the middle of a scary storm. He started for the hatch in the deck, hoping to Arceus that a rogue wave wouldn't catch him off guard and throw him off the boat. Another flash of lightning illuminated his way for a split second, and in that window of time he saw the gargantuan waves surrounding them- everywhere.

_Oh, gods, what have we gotten ourselves into?_

He flipped open the hatch as fast as he possibly could, then jumped in, shutting it above him. The sounds of the storm outside were less audible, but the crashing of waves against the sides of the ship resounded inside very loudly. He was breathing fast, shaking all over, he couldn't tell if it was from the bitter coldness of the water or from onset panic. Shakily, he yelled, "Suzi!?"

He was struck by something to his side, and toppled over. He panicked for a second, thinking that perhaps an intruder had made its way onto their boat, but the sudden rubbing of a fluffy mane around his body made him think otherwise. There he was, lying on the floor, clutching her with both hands as she tried to do the same. She pressed her head into his chest in the darkness, going, "You're still here, oh thank goodness, you're still here..."

"What? I just- just abandoned my- my post, and you're not mad o-or anything?" He was stammering, still breathing heavily.

"No! I'm sorry, Kasuru, I was passed out down here and when I woke up, I realized that the storm out there was getting bad. I tried shouting at you earlier, but I guess the thunder drowned me out. I was getting worried that maybe you weren't here at all..."

"Well, we're still here."

She kept clutching him, the rocking of the boat similarly made them rock with each other. "Just stay here. If we want to catch some sleep, I feel like there'd be no other way."

He smiled a little. Her warmth made him forget about dying, and all that fun stuff. "At your command..."

They maintained a grip on each other as the boat continued to rock from side to side, as the thundering from outdoors and pattering of rain drummed against the wooden hull, crashing waves slamming against it from all directions. For minutes which felt like hours, they remained lying there, silent, atop some spilled open bags and whatever soft garments they were able to snag and pull over themselves in the dark, hoping that the storm would subside. Suziene, with Kasuru wrapped in her arms, tried to push away the isolation and helplessness, burrowing her head into his chest. The gesture made something apparent to them both, and in their silence, the two agreed on the one truth they feared they'd never have to face.

Suziene, who'd always been their leader, was powerless and seeking the comfort of her accomplice. Kasuru, who had been assigned as the captain, abandoned his post to seek the comfort of his. And in their embrace, they accepted that if anything did indeed happen, they were powerless. They were specks in the vastness of the ocean, the universe, and nobody would know where they'd gone, or even care.

They were alone, stuck in their wakeful sleep.

* * *

Another hour had passed, but to Suzi, time no longer mattered. If she kept counting, it'd only grow longer. So there was only now, the torrent around them that'd somehow grown yet more violent. The sound was somewhat hypnotic. The initial fear that struck them both became replaced by a dull acceptance over how helpless they were, and also the annoyance at bouncing around with every particularly bad striking wave.

"Are you still awake, Kasuru?" she whispered right next to his ear. They were a crumpled pile atop a heap of opened bags. He stirred.

"Unfortunately." He sounded solemn, she noted. It was disconcerting to hear themselves talk in that state, she would've much preferred their lively chatter next to a campfire, back on the continent. The darkness with only the flashes of lightning illuminating through the cracks in the hatch- that was no fun.

"I was thinking... We packed some sleep Seeds in the treasure bag," she said. "Might make this a little easier."

He shuffled around to face her, even though he couldn't see anything. "We should've taken them from the start. Why'd you wait until now?"

His eagerness took her by surprise. "Well, if we take them, who knows if we wake up when something goes wrong?" She outstretched a paw to touch his face to make sure he was still there, and that she wasn't just talking to a crate of their belongings.

"_When_ something goes wrong? Wow, you're being really uplifting tonight, thanks, leader... But that's true though, the boat could sink, and we'd go with it, never even notice." He paused, then realized, "Hey, that actually doesn't sound so bad, now that I'm thinking about it. There's nothing we could do about the boat sinking anyway! Let's do it!"

"Wait, what?" His giggling afterwards worried her. "I can't tell if you're being serious or not... Surely, after having been through so much and having gained all the experience we've got, you'd think our lives have at least a _little_ value, enough that we should at least try to save ourselves, if something really does happen?"

"What're we gonna do when it finally comes? Put our arms in the air and flail around, wait until we're dead? Sure, okay, I'll try!" Kasuru's cheeks pulsed with volts of electricity as he said that, his cheeky way of expressing sarcasm and his disagreement with her whole attitude over their circumstance.

Suziene scoffed. "_You're_ being so pessimistic, geez! Didn't I write a rule in our little code, that you're not allowed to lower our morale when it's important? Because you haven't really been improving my mood here, Kas."

"I'm sure you've already broken every rule in that book. Besides, the storm by itself is doing all the work draining us, here." He tried to stand. "So where's the bag, again?"

She lurched around, seeking to stop him. "I really don't like your attitude, Kasuru! As one of the best Exploration Teams from where we started, giving up is not going to be an option! We'll fight against whatever this stupid ocean throws at us!"

"I already told you, it's not like we can do anything about the damn ocean!" A paw grabbed onto his left leg as he stumbled about in the darkness, which made him fall over. "Ow!"

"You did more to change my mind about something in the past five minutes, than you've done, maybe ever!" She kept crawling for him as he tried to shake off her arm. "Come back here, and let's cuddle out the storm!"

"It's really weird when you put it that way," he grunted. He successfully managed to free himself by zapping her with a bolt of electricity. "Are you _trying_ to make wanna _not_ do that?"

"You jerk! You can take those seeds, but I'll still be lying awake here, by myself! I won't let us die when the time comes!" Her yelling, initially with a joking tone, became more frantic and serious as the Pikachu continued to trawl about the boat's cargo. "I can't believe you're really giving up like that, Kasuru! We could actually DIE!"

"No point trying! Gimme a break for once, I wanna sleep!"

Silence. Nothing more than the sounds of the violent outdoors, the endless body of water eagerly waiting outside the hull, wanting to get in. Then, the rummaging continued. She sighed. _He's right, though. But... Our principles..._

"Found it!" The bag, encrusted with a single large gem at it's opening flap, caught the ray of light from the hatch above them, and glimmered in the darkness. "Oh, shoot, you saw that didn't you?"

Kasuru braced himself too late. He was tackled, fell over backwards, crashing through loose bags and scattered boxes with a loud thud. _She never misses._ They were struggling on the floor again, just like at the beach, but with the bag slung over Kasuru's chest between them, keeping them separate. Unlike before, however, the riled Eevee was grunting loudly, her desperate voice getting under his skin. He had to make it seem like he was still cool, calm, composed, so he taunted her, saying, "Remember what happened last time we did this?"

"I won't let you!" Suziene was atop Kasuru and the bag, their hands interlocked, her pressing down on his while she attempted to overpower him and get those yellow mouse hands away from the bag, _anything_ to get them away from it. They were shaking, she couldn't tell if it was hers, or his. Maybe both. Desperately, she bit at his arm as hard as she could, with a determined "Mmmph! LET IT GO!"

"Agh! What's your problem!?" The Pikachu exclaimed. She felt him recoil, then she was thrown to the side by his free arm, striking her with great force. Kasuru realized his mistake too late, after he saw the gem encrusted bag swing to his side, several feet away from his sprawled form on the ground, towards her, waiting to be taken._ She's always the fastest. _Before he could move it, she pulled as hard as she possibly could- the strap got caught on his neck. The tugging at his neck was surprisingly forceful, far exceeding that which he'd used against his friend- it'd been a long time since he'd faced the extent of his exploring partner's strength. _I think we're still _f_riends_... Gasping for air and clutching at his neck, he let out, with the last of his breath, "I'm sorry, Suzi..."

A blinding flash of light enveloped them both. For Suziene, it was the last thing she'd see before toppling over, devoid of all energy. She gave a final yelp before falling down, so loud that it made his ears ring. Her hairs were pricked up in all directions, crackling with electricity. In the darkness, Kasuru felt around for the bag._ I made her faint. Arceus, I've really done it this time..._

He felt the bag, then after some more feeling around, got what he was looking for. A hard seed the size of his palm, with a very distinct texture and scent. Just smelling it made him sleepy. If he ingested it, he'd be out instantly, and for a great deal of time. _Just like I plan on doing._

But first, he'd do her a favor. He didn't want her to regain her strength before he'd rise, so he approached her in the dark. He felt his leg hit her fluffy mane, then bent down and felt her scraggy body. Guiltily, he caressed her torso while she was passed out, in part to seek out which direction her head was, and also because it felt nice. He felt her fuzzy head, and caressed her ears, which surprisingly responded to his touch by twitching about. As if she were listening, he said to her, louder than the din of the storm around them, "I'm so sorry."

He pried open her maw, and stuffed a seed down her throat. She reflexively swallowed it, and felt her head slump against her arm. Her paralyzed state had been overtaken by the potence of the seed, which relaxed her instantly.

He laid down next to her sprawled form. He decided that if they'd sink, they'd do so together. Kasuru thought for a moment, then was struck with the idea of tying themselves together- he'd worry about her reaction until after they woke up, pressed together. Eagerly, Kasuru darted about the storage room, seeking a rope and an already spilled open bag of fruit that they'd ripped open in their battle. A few minutes later, he returned to her side with both articles in hand, then guilty laid down next to her and worked on bringing the bag under her legs, than his. Now fit snugly inside the cloth bag, he pulled the rope from beside him and struggled to tie it around their waists, chests and legs, making sure the bag wrapped around them would remain airtight, should the worst come to happen. The Treasure Bag still slung around his shoulder was equipped with the Floating Orb he'd stashed there secretly, which would ensure they'd remain afloat drifting into the ocean.

_At this point, I'm almost hoping the ship really does break._

He wrapped his arm around her warm, fluffy mane with his cold, free hand. Then with the other, placed the sleep Seed in his mouth, and swallowed.

A 'sleeping bag.' That's what he remembered some of the townsfolk calling it. Before Kasuru's vision faded to black, he focused on her face, which despite being somewhat battered from their fight, appeared peaceful... and asleep. At the very least, Kasuru had taken steps to ensure they'd stick together, no matter what. It was the last thought which brought him solace before drifting off.


End file.
